ᐅ Installation of a Gas Heating System in New Construction 2023/2024

Hello everyone,
we are considering a new corner townhouse and are unsure about the heating system.
It is a new build according to GEG2020 with a gas heating system and solar thermal energy for domestic hot water.
The properties have been marketed since early 2021 and are now close to completion. The adjacent townhouses (3 units) have already been sold.
Due to recent headlines about gas heating systems, we feel uncertain about purchasing a property with gas heating in 2023. Especially the future costs for gas are very concerning to us.

Key data:
Purchase price 520,000 EUR (move-in ready, excluding kitchen)
Living area 135 sqm (1450 sq ft)
Usable area 59 sqm (635 sq ft)

We would appreciate any advice.

Read the last 50 pages and pick something you like ;-)

There are people who generally have no problem installing a gas heating system even today, while others do – you can read about this on the previous pages.
But how should one advise you in your specific situation?
Is the €520,000 (approximately $560,000) price for the house a bargain or on the higher side?
What does the offer situation look like in your search area?
Is the house, apart from the gas heating, exactly what you wanted?
Could you afford to potentially convert to a heat pump and add a photovoltaic system within a foreseeable time, in addition to the house financing?
Is the house price still negotiable considering the heating system argument?
Or are there many other potential buyers waiting in line?
These are the questions I would ask myself in this situation, and unfortunately, we cannot answer them for you.

Costruttrice schrieb:

Some people still generally have no problem installing a gas heating system, while others do—you can read about this on the previous pages. But how can anyone advise you in your specific situation?
Is the €520,000 (about $560,000) asking price for the house a “bargain” or more on the higher end?
What does the supply of available properties look like in your search area?
Is the house exactly what you want, apart from the gas heating system?
Could you afford to possibly convert to a heat pump and add a photovoltaic system in the near future alongside the house financing?
Is the price of the house still negotiable considering the heating system issue?
Or are buyers lining up regardless?
These are questions I would ask myself in this situation and that we cannot answer for you.

In my search area, properties needing renovation (whether detached houses, semi-detached, or terraced houses) are available for around €450,000 to €650,000 (about $485,000 to $700,000). The renovations would cost between €90,000 and €150,000 (about $97,000 to $161,000).

For example, there are also semi-detached houses built in 2015 where you only need to replace floor coverings and paint walls. These cost about €650,000 (about $700,000) plus additional purchase costs including agent fees.

Therefore, we are leaning more toward a new build.

The fact that it is heated with a gas system only bothers us because of the current legal situation. Otherwise, we have no particular preference or ideology about it.

Buyer interest has not been strong for about six months. More properties are appearing on listing portals and are remaining unsold.

Hello,
to put it differently: does the insulation standard and the heating system allow for an easy, future upgrade to a heat pump? In other words, is there underfloor heating with reasonable spacing between the heating loops, or are regular radiators still planned?

The insulation will definitely be fine in a new build; the question is about the heating system design. Currently, the additional cost for a heat pump is probably so high that you won’t recover the extra expenses, even if gas prices double or triple. When the heating system needs to be replaced in about 20 years, then you simply install a heat pump and that’s it.

A 135 sqm (1450 sq ft) terraced house with solar thermal should manage with a maximum annual gas consumption of 8000 kWh. (That was our consumption in a 135 sqm (1450 sq ft) semi-detached house built in 2011.) That results in gas costs of about 800-1000 € per year. A heat pump would cost around 700 €. Even if gas prices double and electricity prices stay the same, the additional annual cost would be about 1300 €. A heat pump currently has an extra upfront cost of roughly 20,000 €. Financing that at 4% interest means savings of about 1200-800 = 400 € per year due to the heat pump. This results in a return on investment of 40 years, which is beyond the expected lifetime of the heating system anyway.
In other words: if the house can be properly converted to a heat pump later, I wouldn’t worry too much about it now.

Best regards,

Andreas

andimann schrieb:

Hello,
to put it differently: Does the insulation standard and the heating system setup allow for a later, trouble-free conversion to a heat pump? For example, is there underfloor heating installed with reasonable pipe spacing, or are standard radiators still planned?

The insulation will definitely be adequate in a new build; the question is about the heating system design. Currently, the extra cost for a heat pump is probably so high that you wouldn’t really recover the additional expense, even if gas prices were to double or triple. When the heating system needs to be replaced in about 20 years, then installing a heat pump would be the natural step.

A 135 m² (1450 sq ft) terraced house with solar thermal should use no more than 8,000 kWh of gas per year. (That was our consumption in a 135 m² (1450 sq ft) semi-detached house from 2011.) That corresponds to gas costs of around 800 to 1,000 euros annually. Heat pump electricity costs would be around 700 euros. Even if gas prices doubled while electricity prices remained stable, you’d face maybe 1,300 euros in extra annual costs. Currently, switching to a heat pump would likely cost you an additional 20,000 euros upfront, which should also be considered with a 4% interest rate. This means a saving of roughly 500 euros per year with the heat pump, resulting in a return on investment of 40 years—far longer than the lifespan of the heating system itself.

In other words, if the house can be properly converted to a heat pump later on, I wouldn’t worry too much about it now.

Best regards,

Andreas

Thanks for this objective analysis!!!